Patent Application
20120152665
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a brake device for an exercise bicycle, especially to a brake device having two resilient elements with different coefficients of elasticity.
2. Description of the Prior Art(s)
With reference to
However, the conventional brake device 70 only have one spring 74 to buffer a pushing force applied by the user and to push the driving shaft 72 back to release the resistance device 82. Considering to a buffering efficiency to the pushing force and a velocity when pushing the driving shaft 72 back, the spring 74 needs to have a moderate coefficient of elasticity. Furthermore, the coefficient of elasticity of the spring 74 is unadjustable to fit the user's need.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a brake device for an exercise bicycle to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.
The main objective of the present invention is to provide a brake device for an exercise bicycle. The brake device for an exercise bicycle has a main tube, a resilient assembly and a driving assembly mounted axially in the main tube, a end cap mounted on an open end of the main tube, and a button attached to the driving assembly. The resilient assembly has a first resilient element and a second resilient element having a second coefficient of elasticity less than a first coefficient of elasticity of the first resilient element.
The driving assembly presses against the first resilient element and is able to obviously and quickly adjust a pressure of the resilient element. The second resilient element quickly pushes the resilient assembly back and a resistance force applied to a wheel of the exercise bicycle is released.
Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
With reference to
The main tube 10 is tubular and has a closed end 11, an open end 12 and a through hole 111. The through hole 111 is formed through the closed end 11 of main tube 10.
The resilient assembly 20 is mounted axially in the main tube 10 and has a support 21, an extending shaft 22, a first resilient element 23 and a second resilient element 24. The support 21 has a mounting recess 211, a sidewall and at least one guiding slit 212. The mounting recess 211 is formed in an upper end of the support 21. The sidewall is defined around the mounting recess 211. The at least one guiding slit 212 is formed through the sidewall of the support 21 and extends axially. The extending shaft 22 protrudes axially from a lower end of the support 21, is thinner than the support 21 and is mounted slidably through the through hole 111 of the main tube 10. The first resilient element 23 may be a compression spring, is mounted in the mounting recess 211 of the support 21 and has a first coefficient of elasticity. The second resilient element 24 may be a compression spring, is mounted around the extending shaft 22 and has two ends and a second coefficient of elasticity. The ends of the second resilient element 24 respectively abut the lower end of the support 21 and the closed end 11 of the main tube 10. The second coefficient of elasticity of the second resilient element 24 is less than the first coefficient of elasticity of the first resilient element 23.
The end cap 30 is mounted securely on the open end 12 of the main tube 10.
The driving assembly 40 is mounted axially through the end cap 30, presses against the first resilient element 23 and has a slider 41, a driving shaft 42 and a stopper 43.
The slider 41 is mounted slidably in the mounting recess 211 of the support 21, presses against the first resilient element 23 and has a lower end, an upper end and at least one sliding protrusion 411. The lower end of the slider 41 presses against the first resilient element 23. The at least one sliding protrusion 411 is formed on a side surface of the slider 41 and slidably protrudes in the at least one guiding slit 212 of the support 21. Thus, the slider 41 slides axially in the mounting recess 211 of the support 21 and does not rotate relative to the support 21.
The driving shaft 42 has an inner section 421, an outer section 422, a limit protrusion 423 and an outer thread 424. The inner section 421 of the driving shaft 42 is mounted through the slider 41. The outer section 422 of the driving shaft 42 is mounted through and protrudes out of the end cap 50. The limit protrusion 423 is formed on the driving shaft 42, is disposed between the inner and outer sections 421, 422 and in the main tube 10, and selectively abuts the end cap 30 so the driving shaft 42 does not slip out of the main tube 10 and the end cap 30. The outer thread 424 is formed on and around the inner section 421 of the driving shaft 42.
The stopper 43 is mounted adjustably on the inner section 421 of the driving shaft 42, abuts the upper end of the slider 41, and may be a screw nut and adjustably and securely engages the outer thread 424 of the driving shaft 42.
The button 50 is attached to the outer section 422 of the driving shaft 42.
The brake device for the exercise bicycle as described has the following advantages. Turning the stopper 43 adjusts the positions of the stopper 43 and the slider 41. Consequently, a pressure of the first resilient element 23 is adjusted. Furthermore, since the first coefficient of elasticity of the first resilient element 23 is larger than the second coefficient of elasticity of the second resilient element 24, adjusting the position of the stopper 43 obviously and quickly adjusts the pressure of the first resilient element 23.
With further reference to
With further reference to
Then, the extending shaft 22 actuates the resistance device 63 through the transmission rods 62 to slow down the rotation of the wheel 64 or to stop the wheel 64 from rotating. Furthermore, since the second resilient element 24 is pressed and has less coefficient of elasticity, as the user releases the button 50, the second resilient element 24 quickly pushes the support 21 and the extending shaft 22 back and the resistance force applied to the wheel 64 is released.
With further reference to
Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.
